Tim Schenck is an Episcopal priest, husband to Bryna, father to Benedict and Zachary, and \x34master\x34 to Delilah (about 50 in dog years). Since 2009 I've been the rector of the Episcopal Parish of St. John the Evangelist in Hingham, Mass. (on the
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Tim Schenck is an Episcopal priest, husband to Bryna, father to Benedict and Zachary, and \x34master\x34 to Delilah (about 50 in dog years). Since 2009 I've been the rector of the Episcopal Parish of St. John the Evangelist in Hingham, Mass. (on the South Shore of Boston). I've also served parishes in Maryland and New York. When I'm not tending to my parish, hanging out with my family, or writing, I can usually be found drinking good coffee -- not that drinking coffee and these other activities are mutually exclusive. I hope you'll visit my website at www.frtim.com to find out more about me, read some excerpts from my book \x34What Size are God's Shoes: Kids, Chaos & the Spiritual Life\x34 (Morehouse, 2008), and check out some recent sermons.

Robert Raymond Boone continues to add to his all-star baseball resume, each day he heads for his office at Nationals Park in Washington,D.C.

Boone, after 19 big league seasons with the Phillies, Angels, and Royals, along with stints managing in Kansas City and Cincinnati, the San Diego native still has passion to be in the thick of developing future major leaguers. Since being drafted by the Philadelphia Phillies in the sixth round of the 1969 amateur draft after attending Stanford University, it has been non-stop growth, both as a player as well as an executive . Boone,65, is part of baseball royalty. He is the son of the late third baseman Ray Boone, and the father of two big-leaguers : former second baseman Bret Boone and infielder Aaron Boone. All four family members were named all-stars during their careers.

As part of his position in the Nationals front office, Boone, who as a California Angel on September 30, 1984 caught Mike Witt's perfect game, oversees player development. Playing alongside hall of famers during his all-star career as Mike Schmidt, Steve Carlton and George Brett, being part of a World Series winner in 1980 with Philadelphia, being around tremendous owners as Gene Autry, Ruly Carpenter, and Ewing Kauffman, no better baseball education could have been offered to Boone. " When Bill Giles ( then Phillies President & Owner ) traded me to the Angels, he put me in the best situation as a player ", Boone said during our conversation in Cooperstown's Clark Sports Center last Saturday. " I went to a great team. And Gene Autry ( Angels owner ) was the nicest guy in the world ".

Second in club hierarchy only to General Manager and Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations Mike Rizzo, under Boone's eye for scouting, teaching, and developing Washington's minor league system, Bryce Harper, Ryan Zimmerman and Stephen Strasburg lead the list of graduates. When being tutored by the late Gene Mauch, by his assesment the man who knew more about baseball than anyone, it's no wonder Boone successfully has made the transition from working on the field level to the board room. Mauch collected 1,900-plus wins during a 26 year managerial career. It was during the mid-'80's, when the ' Little General ', as Mauch was referred to by those in the game, piloted the Angels that Boone learned a lot of the nuances of managing simply by observing him. " Coming to the Angels and being around Gene was a great move for me during that period in my career ", Boone tells.

Inducted into the Phillies Wall of Fame in 2005, Boone says that he and Mauch were good friends away from the ballparks as well. " Players loved playing for him, but Gene had no patience for pitchers. He couldn't accept pitchers making mistakes ",

As much personal success that Bob Boone experienced during his seven seasons playing in Anaheim, he makes no excuses in stating that he is beholding to the Phillies organization . Hoewver, there was a time that Boone may have seen his time in Philadelphia cut short with a trade - had it not been nixed the following day. During baseball's annual winter meetings that were held in Hawaii , members of the Phillies front office attempted to trade Boone to the Detroit Tigers for perennial all-star catcher Bill Freehan. " The way I understood it, it was about 1am, there were people drinking and I was offered to the Tigers ", Boone recalls. " The next day the Phillies changed their minds. There weren't any trades between the Phillies and Tigers for the next 30 years ",

As a key veteran starter for the Phillies championship in 1980, Boone vividly remembers what the mood in the clubhouse was when Dallas Green took over as manager for Danny Ozark in late 1979. Green, the author of his newly released autobiography - The Mouth That Roars, was seen by Boone and teammates as coming in as a 'hard ' guy; someone who had relationships with most Phillies players. Green had previoulsy been a player, minor league manager, and farm director under general manager Paul Owens. From his time spent around Green and others who succeed in the game, Boone grew to be a great communicator in teaching others. " The Phillies are a special organization; first class all the way ", says Boone. " Owens ( GM Paul Owens ), Bill Giles and Ruly Carpenter were all a home grown core team. Management was patient, they allowed the players to grow together ".

When Philadelphia won the 1980 championship, crucial player moves in Owens acquiring Tug McGraw, Pete Rose, Manny Trillo, Del Unser, and Gary Maddox were the culmination of a 10-year building plan. This appears to be the model Boone adheres to in going about his work with the Nationals. Occasional visits to Washington minor league affiliates in Syracuse ( NY ) , Harrisburg ( PA ), and Hagerstown ( MD ), and the like allow Boone is see up close what his scouting staff report. Growing a proud future for Nationals fans, one player at a time, that's what Bob ' the Builder ' is all about.